1. Field of the Disclosure
The present disclosure relates generally to golf clubs. More specifically, the present disclosure relates to a golf club head for hitting a golf ball from an open face position.
2. Background of the Disclosure
Golf clubs are used for striking a ball in the game of golf and are generally comprised of a shaft coupled to a clubhead via a hosel. The shaft also usually includes a grip for holding the golf club. Generally speaking, there are three types of clubs: woods, irons and putters. Woods are used for long distance fairway shots, irons are used for shots approaching the green, and putters are used on the green to hit the ball into the cup.
The present disclosure is directed to irons, and particularly wedges. Wedges are irons typically having a loft higher than 52° and are used for short-distance, high-altitude shots such as hitting the ball onto the green or getting the ball out of the rough. Examples of such wedges include gap, sand, and lob wedges. Loft is measured by the angle between the club's face and the vertical plane. Clubs with shorter shafts and higher lofts typically give the ball a higher and shorter trajectory. Table 1 below shows typical loft angles for different wedge types.
TABLE 1Wedge TypeTraditional Loftgap48-54°sand54-58°lob58-64°
Clubheads may take on a variety of forms, but typically comprises a face, toe, heel, crown, and sole. The United States Golf Association (USGA) provides rules and specifications for approved club designs. Such rules may be found in Appendices II and III of the “Rules of Golf” and are incorporated herein by reference in their entirety. “The Rules of Golf” is a standard reference that represents the ordinary and custom usage of golf terms. Appendix II, in particular, sets forth standard specifications and terms for golf club design as agreed upon by the golf community. Here, the “toe,” “heel,” “sole,” “crown,” and “back” are used as reference points to set forth clear specifications for approved club head dimensions.
In general, the “toe” refers to the portion of the club face farthest from the hosel or shaft, the “heel” refers to the portion of the club face closest to the hosel or shaft, and the “sole” refers to the bottom portion of the club head that typically contacts the ground. The “leading edge” of the club head is the front-most edge where the club face and the sole intersect, and “trailing edge” is the rear-most edge where the sole meets the back of the club head. “Bounce angle” refers to the angle formed between the leading edge and the portion of the sole that rests on the ground at address. Wedges typically have bounce angles somewhere between 5-12.° Higher bounce angles help to penetrate the ground under the ball in the rough or sandy areas.
During a golf stroke, the club head serves to compress the ball while grooves on the club face help to impart spin on the ball. “Backspin” is a type of spin that moves in a fast clockwise motion as viewed from a parallel standpoint to the left of the ball. It is the combination of compression and backspin that help to give the ball aerodynamic lift. Typically, more backspin equates to more control.
The grooves on the face of the club serve several purposes. As mentioned, grooves promote spin on the golf ball to help control flight. Additionally, grass can often interfere between the ball and the club face. Since grass is mostly water, the water must have someplace to go. In this regard, grooves function in a manner similar to treads on a tire—to get the water out—and thus help to maintain contact with the ball. Current USGA specifications state that: the width and cross-section of grooves must be consistent across the face of the club and along the length of the grooves; any rounding of groove edges shall be in the form of a radius which does not exceed 0.20 inches; the width must not exceed 0.035 inches; the distance between edges of adjacent grooves must not be less than three times the width of a groove, and not less than 0.075 inches; and the depth of a groove must not exceed 0.020 inches.
Normally at impact, it is desirable to have the grooves “square” to the ball, or 90° with respect to the target line. In some cases though, players may “open” the club face in an attempt to hit the ball higher (e.g., when performing short chip shots to the green). This is done by rotating the face outward such that the toe is behind the heel at impact.
Precision shots onto the green require both high spin rate and loft. Higher spin and loft help the ball to check up quickly on the green or release to the hole. Sometimes, a chip shot onto an away-ward sloping green requires the player to adjust the trajectory to a higher loft to keep the ball from rolling off the green. Higher spin rates and loft may be achieved by choosing a club with a higher number (corresponding to degree of loft)—or by opening the club face.
Opening the club face creates additional loft, but renders the horizontal grooves on conventional clubs far less effective for stopping the ball on the green. This is because the grooves are no longer square to the target line when the face is open. In other words, the grooves are not optimally aligned for imparting maximum backspin on the ball. As a result, higher spin rates and better control are difficult to achieve when opening the club face with conventional clubs. Figuratively, this can be translated that conventional clubs have no “brakes” for stopping a ball on the green with an open face approach.
Other drawbacks to opening the club face of conventional clubs include causing the bounce angle to become too high. In this case, the leading edge is raised to the point where it may interfere with the ball. Thus, high bounce angles are the primary cause of “thinned” shots—where the ball is struck along the leading edge. Another drawback is that glare may be increased—reducing player visibility and striking accuracy. Still another drawback to opening the club face of conventional clubs is that “feel” and control of the club may be adversely affected.
In addition to the above drawbacks, many prior art wedges comprise a horizontal curvature across the clubface. This “bulging” clubface configuration is generally designed to correct for slices or hooks. Such clubs rely on the “gear effect” that induces a counteractive sidespin on the ball when hit in the toe or heel (respectively)—to draw it back toward the center. It is further appreciated in the art that the “gear effect” is intended for a normal address. In other words, the “gear effect” is ineffective for an open clubface—adversely affecting the amount of corrective sidespin induced (i.e., too much/too little “draw” back toward the center).
There is therefore a need for a golf club head that imparts optimal backspin on a ball when struck with the club face open. A need also exists for a golf club head that provides more control and stopping power when hitting a ball with an open address. There is further a need for a sole or trailing edge that accommodates the open position and allows the loft to be effectively increased while avoiding thinned shots traditionally associated with high bounce angles. Moreover, there is a need for a longer hosel or shaft that provides improved feel and control in the open face position. The present disclosure addresses these needs and others.